Playing with Fire
by KortneyBreAnne
Summary: Yuuki's been pushed away by Kaname one too many times. Finally fed up with it, she turns to the only other pure blood she knows for guidance. Sara Shirabuki. Takes place directly after the events in Chapter 80. This is not a Sara/Yuuki romance story.
1. Prologue

I walked up behind Kaname quietly, sure not to make a single sound to warn him I was coming. Not even Akatsuki or Ruka seemed to notice I was advancing on them. Which was ridiculous considering they were facing towards me.

"I found you" I pulled out Artemis, and smirked at Kaname's stiffened back.

Kaname wouldn't even turn to look at me, "...You should leave now, Yuuki." He said, with his back still to me.

I felt my hand tighten around Artemis. Part of me was itching to do just as Kaname told me to, but the other part of me was boiling with a strange sensation. "No, not until you tell me what's going on"

"Yuuki, listen to Kaname-san. You're being ridiculous." My eyes shifted from their spot on Kaname and moved to Ruka. My vision seemed to tint red just for a moment. My face turned hot, and I was embarrassed. How dare she...

Before I could speak up although I'm not entirely sure I would have, Akatsuki spoke first, "Ruka, stay out of it, this isn't your place."

Ruka glared at Akatsuki like she had something more to say, but she chose to keep her mouth shut.

"Kaname-sama, this is between us. Why won't you talk to me? Why did you tell me about Zero's past? Why are you trying to push me away?" My voice cracked slightly under my words, but I was determined to stay strong.

After a moment of silence, Kaname turned. I had been expecting to see his soft red brown eyes, that I had always loved about him. They always held this warm softness in them when he was looking at me. This time though, they were dark, and cold. Calculating. I could barely look at him, under his unwavering glare.

"Why ask questions you already know the answer to, dear Yuuki?" He slowly walked towards me.

"I don't know the answers, that's why I'm asking you. I need to know, Kaname-sama. Stop pushing me away." I tried to continue to look him in the eyes, but the coldness there was too much to handle. I moved my gaze down to the ground.

Kaname's soft touch lifted my gaze back up to his face. I sighed and felt myself leaning in towards him. A small smile stretched across Kaname's face, but it was quickly gone. "Oh Yuuki... You couldn't make this easy and painless could you?"

I looked up at him, confused, "Painless?"

"I tried to push you away for your own good. You are of no use to me, Yuuki. I told you before, you are nothing, but a hindrance to me and my plan." He smiled, and my stomach twisted. I pushed him away from me. My eyes were stinging from the verbal slap he had sent towards me.

Something in me snapped, and I felt a burning sensation filling my body. "Leave, Kaname. Now."

Kaname seemed to flinch, and then his hand twitched, "I'm sorry, but I can't do that. There's someone here that I need before I can go, I won't leave until I have her. Sara cannot be allowed to continue poisoning this world."

I held Artemis tightly within my grasp, "I'm sorry, but that just won't be acceptable, Kaname. As long as Sara is a student of Cross Academy, it's my duty as her dorm president to protect her against all evils." I smiled, "Besides, I need her for now. So why don't you go play with your little..." I shot a smirk towards Ruka, "... pawns someplace else?"

Ruka growled, and Akatsuki held her back.

"Well, Kaname? Will you leave now, peacefully?" Zero slipped in from the shadows and took his place next to me. He never stopped glaring at Kaname from the moment he walked into our intense atmosphere. "Or will Yuuki and I have to throw you out?" Zero finished for me, with thinly veiled venom. It was obvious he was hoping for the latter option.

Kaname appraised Zero and I for a moment, debating whether or not to chance his pride. "Hm." He said with a small laugh, "Seems like there is more to this than I originally expected...  
>Come, Ruka, Akatsuki. Let's leave the battle for another day."<p>

"Smart choice." I said.

As they began to leave, Ruka turned to look at Zero and I. I gave her the biggest smile I could muster, and waved to her. She glared and turned her attention back to Kaname.

"Damn..." Zero silently cursed to himself.

"Hoping for more action?" I laughed.

He gave me a strange look, "What happened before I got here?" He looked towards Kaname's retreating figure and back to me, "Something's different about you... Something's off..."

The smile slowly slipped off my face, and with a grim tone I answered, "Nothing happened, nothing at all."

* * *

><p>"What was that, Kaname-san? Why are we retreating? We could have handled them." Ruka said when they were far from Cross Academy.<p>

"As I said, Ruka, there is more to this than I had planned for." Kaname said calmly. He was already forming another plan within his mind. This was one thing he hadn't planned for. He hadn't expected Yuuki to acquire such a power... Even for a pure blood it was unheard of... "For now, we retreat."

"As you wish, Kaname-sama" Akatsuki cut Ruka off, knowing she would regret it, if she continued to speak while angry.

* * *

><p>As I walked up the steps to the night dorms I could hear the bustling of the night class students swarming around the door. It would seem that Kaname's presence had been noticed by the night class, and they were dying to know what had happened, but none had been brave enough to stand by my side against Kaname. I opened the door, and everyone moved back and made room for me.<p>

I knew every last one of their faces and could tell they were dying to ask me questions. But none of them dared to speak. I suppose they were unsure how to. For the moment, their questions would have to wait, "Where is Sara?"

Hanabusa came down the stairs, staring at me with his wide blue eyes. His hair was even more disheveled than usual. Even he seemed thrown off by my presence, "She's up here, in her room."

Everyone seemed to move out of my way leaving me a path to walk through them as I made my way up the stairs. The only one who didn't move was Hanabusa, who was staring at me. I slowly pushed past him, barely touching shoulders with him. Something seemed to wake Hanabusa out of his daze as I walked past him, and he quickly followed behind me. "Yuuki..." He said softly, outside of the door to Sara's room. "What..."

"Wait, not now" I said, and pushed the door open. Sara was sitting in the same spot she always seemed to be sitting at when I saw her. With the same grace and poise I could only dream of having. Her servants were dashing around the room, putting her clothes into bags.

"Yuuki-chan," She said with a soft womanly voice, she was the only one who was not taken aback by me at all, "Is Kaname-san gone, now?"

I walked into the room, and Hanabusa followed, shutting the door behind him. I sat down from across Sara. Ichijo poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of me, while staring at me.

I smiled at Sara, "Going somewhere, Sara?" I looked pointedly at her servants who seemed to freeze when they noticed my stare.

Sara only chuckled, "Oh, well... It seems I'm no longer safe here. Kind Zero has offered us safety at the Hunter's association. That is... unless you have something to say about that?" I think part of Sara was already expecting was I was going to do, but for the moment I was fine with being predictable to her. I had taken Kaname off guard. That's all that matters to me at the moment.

"Let's just say... I have a proposition for you, Sara. One that could..." I smiled exposing my fangs, "_benefit_ both us."

Sara laughed happily, "And tell me, sweet _innocent_ Yuuki, what would that proposition be?"

"You and I are destined for great things, Sara. I simply have realized, our destinies are much closer intertwined then I previously expected."

Sara's face took on a calculating edge, "Oh, my, my, Yuuki... You wouldn't be suggesting a partnership, now would you?" I only smiled in return. "How ever would I know this isn't a trick to help Kaname kill me?"

I stood up and walked over to Sara. I picked up a knife off the coffee table between us, and went for the spot next to Sara. Ichijo tensed and moved to stand between me and Sara, but with a single sign from Sara, he froze and watched unsteadily. I held the silver knife to my palm and cut in, breaking the skin. Hanabusa gasped, "Yuuki! What are y-" I silenced him with a look. The room filled with the aroma of my pure blood. Every set of fangs in the room clicked out.

I handed the knife over to Sara, who with a smile, grabbed the knife. Sara already seemed to understand exactly what I was doing. She cut into her palm, and set the knife back down on the table. I held my palm out to her lips, and she extended hers to me. I cringed at the pain of Sara's fang's tearing into the cut, and I retaliated by biting down on her hand as well.

Hanabusa and Ichijo could only stare in horror at what was happening. Neither fully understood what was going on, but Sara and I understood perfectly. The world wouldn't expect what was about to come.


	2. Lighting the Match

Ichijo couldn't quite understand the events of the previous weeks. After Yuuki and Sara made their strange blood bond promise, they had become inseparable. Sara took every chance available to mold and form Yuuki into the proper young pure blood Hanabusa had tried to teach Yuuki to become months before. Yuuki began to change as the days passed by. At first it was so small Ichijo barely noticed it.

Hanabusa, though, noticed all of it. First it started with the way Yuuki dressed. Yuuki had originally worn her uniform exactly as it was supposed to be worn, but that quickly ended. She no longer wore her clunky brown boots, that clashed terribly with her bright white uniform. Now in place of the boots, she wore a pair of perfectly red peep toe heels. Her skirt never set evenly. Her shirt was not pushed in. And her jacket was never buttoned, while the top three buttons of her shirt never seemed to get buttoned anymore either. In place of the simple black Cross Academy necklace that Yuuki had always worn for as long as Hanabusa knew her, was replaced with a black choker with a single blood red rose adorning it.

Hanabusa never mentioned the changes at first. He figured she would snap out of her current mood and change back to the same annoying Yuuki she always was, but she didn't. It seemed that the more she stayed around Sara, the more twisted she became. Once Yuuki had a clear idea of what was right and what was wrong, but now lines were all blurring together. As her personality and outlook darkened, as did her appearance. Her eyes darkened considerably and they were no longer the same big, innocent, dopey ones he remembered her for having. They took a similar look as to Sara's or even Rido's, if Hanabusa was being honest with himself.

Yuuki's hair darkened and began to twist along with her dark outlook. She wore dark eye make up, that Sara always took a great deal of pride in, considering she always did Yuuki's make-up. Yuuki also began to wear deep red lipstick that matched perfectly with her new shoes.

Hanabusa had tried to talk to Yuuki about the events that had taken place between Kaname and her, but she never would answer. She would always think of someway to change the subject, or she would do what she was beginning to love to do the most. She would embarrass him. Not in any cold mean ways. She just... She would push herself up next to him, just as Sara would Ichijo, then when his face turned bright red, she would dash away giggling to herself. "Silly, Hanabusa. What kind of a flirt do you think I am? I'm already spoken for!"

He had tried to distance himself from her at first, but he found that he couldn't keep it up. Each time he would find himself unbearably curious as to what she was doing. She was always, always, up to something these days. Much like Kaname had as well, when he was dorm president. She would lock herself away for hours, alone with Sara and sometimes without her. What the two of them did was completely between themselves. Yuuki would never tell him, no matter how many times he asked. Sara as well, would not tell Ichijo, even though he begged her with his puppy eyes many times.

Everyone in the night class quickly learned to behave when it came to Yuuki's orders. While most had been a little wild and disrespectful towards her in the beginning, they quickly dropped the attitude when Yuuki began changing. She was nothing like the bumbling little girl they had met all that time ago. She was a true pure blood princess now. With no difficulty with her charisma at all.

While everyone else in the night class rejoiced at having the missing princess finally take the place of a leader, Hanabusa couldn't help but miss the girl he'd gotten so used to knowing. Many times while watching Yuuki, he would find himself wondering what exactly Kaname had done to cause such a change in her.

* * *

><p>The sun was just beginning to set as the Night class students prepared for a new day. Hanabusa stood beside me, leaning lazily against the wall with his eyes shut. He never complained to me about it, but I knew he hated waking up so early all the time. I watched from the window as the the Day class crowded around the gates in front of our dorms.<p>

I growled in frustration. Hanabusa's eyes opened to look at me questioningly. I sighed, "Zero's skipping his duties. Again" My eyes went to the crowd once more and noticed as Yori tried to get the girls to go back to the dorms. Zero was no where in sight still.

Sara walked down the stairs and stopped next to me, looking out the window with me, "Silly creatures, aren't they? Those humans. So desperate for a look at the mysterious Night class." She chuckled to herself.

"Hm." I said mostly to myself. "Well, looks like we're on our own to getting to class. Zero is no where in sight. Again" I pushed my unruly bangs out of my face. My hair for some reason would no longer lay flat against my head like it used to. I wish I could say it was starting to curl like my mother's hair did, but it was more out of control than hers. It was even darker too... closer to black now, rather than brown.

Hanabusa pushed himself off the wall and stood protectively behind me as we walked out the front door of the dorm. Sara and Ichijo followed closely behind us. Shiki, Rima, Maria, and the rest of the Night class followed behind us slowly. None of them wanted to deal with the humans.

As we neared the gates, the humans of the day class all quieted quickly. They stared at us like they had never seen us before, even though they repeated the same thing every single day. My vampire ears quickly picked up small bits of conversations from the humans, "The Night class girls are so hot."

"It's idol! He's so handsome! Dorm pres Kuran is _so_ lucky!" I chuckled, but at the same time it irritated me to hear them talking about us. As if they knew anything about myself or Hanabusa.

Two boys at the front of the pack were having a debate about who was the most attractive girl in the night class, "Dorm pres Kuran is pretty cute... In a scary kind of way." He chuckled.

His friend laughed, "I don't know, I think Shirabuki-san is hot. In a older woman kind of way."

"She's only a year older than you, idiot!" He smacked his friend behind his head.

"She's still older!" The boy exclaimed and rubbed the back of his sore head. I chuckled at the boys, which brought their attention to me. They turned bright red, when they realized I could hear them. I gave them a wave and wink as we passed by. Poor Yori was about to be trampled when I gracefully reached out and pulled her into the 'safety' behind the Night class gates. She sighed in relief, "Thanks, Yuuki. I don't know how you managed to do this for so long. They're insane."

I laughed at my best friend, "You don't have to do that for us, Yori. It isn't your job."

Yori shrugged, "I know... It's just... Zero has seemed really down lately, so I don't mind helping..."

That peeked my attention. Zero hadn't been around in a while. I could never find him at night. I had to handle on more than one occasion sneaky little day class humans snooping around past dark. "You've seen him?"

"Well, yes." That's right. She's in the same class as him, unlike me. Of course she's seen him.

"...How is he?" I asked cautiously. I don't know why, but I felt like I shouldn't let the other students see my concern for Zero.

Yori sighed, "Tired, mostly. He's still always falling asleep during class. I only see him occasionally though, he's really taken to skipping classes. He wasn't in class today at all. He doesn't even stay at the boys dorm either. He has a place off campus."

"Hm. That's strange." I don't remember Zero skipping before. But then again, I had always been the one dragging him along with me to class. Most times while he was still half-asleep.

Sara walked up and circled Yori and I, like a predator. "Who's this adorable human, Yuuki? A friend of yours?"

I gave Sara a tired look. I could tell Yori felt uncomfortable being near Sara. I guess unlike me, she could see Sara as a threat. Or atleast her body was telling her, she was a threat. Even though she looked scared, Yori spoke up anyways, "Best friends." What a trooper. I smiled at Yori. She smiled back.

"_Oh, _aren't you a brave one...?" Sara's hand reached out towards Yori's hair, but before she could touch it, Zero jumped off the top of the gate and grabbed Sara's hand. Sara smiled and pulled her hand back. She placed it on Ichijo's chest to hold him back from Zero. Ichijo had come to Sara's side the moment Zero jumped and grabbed Sara's arm. Hanabusa stood behind me, watching Zero intently.

"You shouldn't be here Yori." Zero gave Yori a disapproving look.

"It's okay, Zero." Yori laughed, "I'm with Yuuki-chan. She won't let me get hurt."

"I wouldn't bet on that" Zero grumbled.

That was crossing a line. "Hey!" I snapped. "Don't try to act like I would let my friend be hurt. As long as she's with me, not a single night class student would dare lay a finger on her."

Zero and I glared at each other, "Like I said, I wouldn't bet on it. It's not like they have a habit of actually listening to you, _princess._"

I growled, and as did a number of the night class students behind me. "Don't question my authority of them, _boy._"

"Don't call me boy, _princess._ I'm older than you!" Zero said loud enough to bring all the day class students' attention to us.

Yori tried to calm us down, "Come on guys... Let's not make a scene."

I ignored her, "Don't call me princess!" We were really making quite the scene.

Hanabusa finally got irritated, "Enough." He covered my mouth cutting me off mid-insult, and glared at Zero, "Don't you have a job to do?"

Zero glared at all of us Night students, but said nothing. He grabbed Yori's arm and began pulling her away. "Come on, Wakaba" He threw open the gates and all of the Day class student's stumbled back. He glared at all of them, "If you're not back in your dorms when I count to ten, you'll regret being born." He threatened. They all dashed off faster than light.

Yori waved sheepishly at me as she was pulled away, "See you later, Yuuki"

Hanabusa removed his hand from my mouth. Good thing for him too, because I was about to bite down. Hard. "Bye Yori," I smiled at her, or I tried to atleast. Zero really put a damper on my mood. How dare he be so rude! After I had been concerned for him! What a jerk.

"Come on, we have to get to class." Hanabusa grabbed my hand and began pulling me down the path to the classes.

"Yeah, yeah" I said.

The rest of the Night class followed behind us.

* * *

><p>"Zero." Yori said, as Zero continued to pull her along by her wrist. "Zero! Slow down!" She was stumbling over her own feet trying to keep up with him. He tightened his grip around her wrist. "Ow! Zero, you're hurting me! Stop. Please."<p>

Something she said made Zero come to a complete stop suddenly. He was raging still though. His blood was boiling as he remembered Yuuki's smug arrogant _pure blood_ attitude towards him. He turned to look at Yori, who was rubbing her wrist. Not paying attention to him. "What were you thinking!" He yelled.

Yori hadn't been expecting his rage towards her, so she jumped back in shock. "What are you talking about?"

"Do you have any- _any idea_ of how much danger you were just in? What the hell were you thinking?" He paced back and forth in front of her, raging.

Yori couldn't understand what caused him to react this way, "I wasn't in any danger. If Yuuki says she can control the night class, then I trust her. They aren't all bad, Zero."

"They're blood thirsty monsters."

"Like you have any room to talk, Zero Kiryu!" Yori pointed a finger into his chest and pushed him back. They stood glaring at each other, as Zero tried to think of something to say in retort.

Bumbling out of the forest came Maria, breaking the tension. Yori jumped back not realizing someone had been so close by and realizing that if it had been a Day class student they could have completely blown the Night class cover. Zero glared at Maria, annoyed that she was off wandering again.

Maria froze taking in the scene in front of her. She hadn't expected to find Zero alone with that girl from earlier. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know you were busy, Zero" She said innocently. She moved in closer to Zero, and the girl from earlier moved back, away from Zero giving them space. Maria didn't like the fact that Zero was by himself with this girl. She didn't want Zero alone with any other girl that wasn't herself.

"Maria, go to class." Zero said, irritated. He didn't want to be too mean to this girl. She reminded him so much of Ichiru that he couldn't bring himself to take his anger out on her.

"But I wanted to talk to you, Zero!" She smiled, and stood on her tippy toes trying to get him to look at her.

"Later. Not now, go to class" He refused to look her in the eyes.

Maria huffed, and turned to look at Yori. Not too friendly like either, "I'm Maria, what's your name?"

Yori looked at the strange short vampire, "Sayori"

"What a cute name!" Maria exclaimed, "Let's be good friends, Sayori-chan!" Though her tone was light, it was clear she was marking her territory. It was clear she did not intend to be good friends with anyone, especially not Yori.

"Yeah, lets." She smiled. No way was she going to deal with a psycho little vampire right now.

"Great!" Maria clapped, "See you later, Zero. Bye, Sayori-chan!"

As she disappeared back into the shadows of the forest, Yori and Zero turned back to face each other. Neither really wanted to continue the fight from earlier. The mood had been killed by Maria. Zero sighed, "Go to bed, Wakaba"

Yori wasn't usually so stubborn, but for some reason when Zero got that tone with her, part of her couldn't help but be stubborn. "No." She crossed her arms.

"I'm not arguing with you, Wakaba!" He raised his voice at her, and the space between them shrank a little bit again. "I'll send you to the headmaster, I'm not kidding."

It was an empty threat and they both knew it. Zero didn't want to bother with Kaien anymore than he wanted to deal with Yori's stubborn attitude. "I'm not going anywhere, unless you come with me. When was the last time you slept, Zero?" She could see the bags under his eyes from a mile away.

He sighed, "It doesn't matter, Wakaba." He rubbed his face, and looked back at her, "You're really set on this, aren't you?"

She nodded her head.

"Fine, I guess it's off to the headmaster's office." He grabbed her hand.

"Hey don't just pull me along! You're hurting me again." She tried to drag her feet and slow him down.

"Wanna do this the hard way, fine, let's do this the hard way." He stopped, bent down, and threw her over his shoulder.

"Hey! Put me down, Kiryu!" She yelled and pounded at his back.

"I warned you, Wakaba. You're the headmaster's problem now!"

"I can't believe you, Kiryu!" She yelled as he continued walking towards the headmaster's.

Off from the distance, Maria watched the close scene with a sour face. "That tramp..." She muttered to herself. Well if this Sayori girl wanted to fight her for her Zero then fine, but there was no way in hell Maria was going to walk away without giving one hell of a fight first.


	3. Catching Flame

Zero pushed open the dark wood doors into the head master's office, with Yori struggling on his back. Yori blushed uncontrollably when she realized her back end was very visible under her skirt with Zero holding her like this. Zero sighed and plopped her down into the very chair she was still sitting in at the moment, and she sighed in relief when she realized the head master wasn't in his office.

Zero gave her a stern look, "Stay, or I swear I will track you down and bring you straight back."

"Alright, alright!" Yori had said, and Zero disappeared.

That had been at least 15 minutes ago, and Yori was beginning to think he was never going to come back. That this was all some stupid trick he was playing on her. She would end up staying in this chair all night, and then seem like some type of creep when the headmaster found her passed out in his office the next day.

She was debating whether or not just to leave when the door finally opened, "She's your problem now, Cross." Zero said.

Yori turned around in her seat and looked at the headmaster sheepishly. For some reason her stubbornness was gone now that she was in front of the headmaster.

Zero pushed Kaien into his office and slammed the door shut behind him.

When Zero's footsteps faded from the hall, Kaien sighed, and rubbed his tired eyes. That was when Yori noticed that the headmaster was still in his pajamas! She blushed.

"I'm surprised to see you in my office, Ms. Wakaba. How's your father?" He asked as he walked over to his chair and sat down.

"He's good, sir." She said quietly.

"That's good," He nodded, "So why are you in my office this late, Ms. Wakaba? You aren't one of the normal Day class girls who want a peek at the Night class. Have you acquired a crush amongst the Night class students?"

Yori's face turned bright red, "No, sir! It's nothing like that. I was just... Well I was trying to help Zero. He's seemed so down lately, and he almost never is there to get the Night class safely to their classes." As she tried to explain the situation, she became more and more flustered, "It's really all his fault in the first place!" She exclaimed, "He was yelling at me for talking to Yuuki, telling me it was dangerous to be around the Night class. But if Yuuki says she will protect me, then I trust her. Zero is just being a pig headed jerk!"

Kaien nodded as she went on complaining about Zero. Something about the way she was acting made him feel that she _had_ acquired a crush, just not on a Night class student. When she finally slowed down, and stopped talking, he said, "I see."

"I really wasn't trying to cause trouble, sir. I promise."

He nodded, "I know. You worry for Zero, you care for him?" She nodded and he continued, "You also care for Yuuki a great deal as well, for that I am grateful. My children," He was glad Zero wasn't here so that he could call him that, not that Zero being there would have stopped him anyways, "mean a awful lot to me. I worry for them." The cogs in Kaien's head began churning and he decided upon a new plan.

"You're a good father, sir" Yori said, earnestly. It was very obvious to everyone that Kaien cared for his children more than anything else.

He chuckled, "Thank you, Sayori. May I call you that?" She nodded. He continued, "The truth is, I've noticed Zero's current situation as well. He tends to react the same way, if not worse, when I comment on it." He stood up and moved to look out the window. "It's a lot of work for just one person. Not that it had been a walk in the park for him when Yuuki was here to help, but I think in it's own way, it's good for Zero to have someone around."

Yori nodded along with what Kaien was saying.

"Perhaps if someone were around Zero, he would open up more. He would see he didn't need to do everything on his own." With his back to Yori, he began smiling, "Wouldn't you agree, Sayori?"

"Of course, sir. But Zero is so stubborn, he won't get along with just anyone."

He nodded, "That's true, but if it were someone he already knew perhaps he would be more inclined to relying on them?... Perhaps someone like... You?"

Yori froze, and thought of how well _that_ would go over with Zero. He'd be furious. Part of her liked the idea of bugging him more. "...M-me, sir?"

"You do seem like the best candidate for the job." He turned to her, with no smile on his face. Instead he kept his face calm, and looked at her with big earnest eyes. "You've already began helping with getting the Day class back to the dorms, you know about the Night class' secret, and you're close to both Yuuki and Zero. If there was anyone suited for this job, it would be you." He said.

She was quiet, thinking it over. She wanted to be closer to Yuuki, they almost never got to see each other anymore. If she was helping Zero, she would see Yuuki a lot more. Just like how Yuuki saw Kaname when she was a prefect...It would also be a great chance to annoy Zero... "I'll do it." Yori finally answered with a clear voice.

"I want to be very clear with you, Sayori." Kaien said, "This job will not be a fun one. It's a pay-less responsibility, with no respect, and very little sleep."

Yori nodded, "I understand, sir. I want to be of some help though. I feel bad because I'm supposed to be there for Yuuki, she's always been there for me, and now that she needs somebody, I'm not there for her. This is my chance to help not only her, but Zero and the other Night class students. I promise I will uphold the rules of this school, protect both the Day and Night class students, and I will do my best to be there for both Zero and Yuuki, no matter what. You can count on me, sir!" She said with a smile.

He smiled back, "I'm glad for it too, Sayori." He walked over to his desk and pulled out some things from his desk. One was a small black box, the other was a silver stick. It looked a lot like how Artemis looked like, but it was thinner, and slightly shorter. He also pulled out a prefect arm band that looked a lot like Yuuki's had. Kaien walked over to Sayori, and she stood up. He handed her over the stick. When it touched her hand it transformed into a long rod. It sent chills up Yori's back, but the longer she held it, the stronger she felt. "This is a new weapon the hunter association has created, it's a prototype for right now. I suppose this is the best time to test it against unruly teenage vampires. Or humans." He chuckled. He also handed her over the armband.

She nodded with a smile on her face. "And the box?" She asked.

Kaien looked at the box, and paused to think. "I think it's best to start with the prototype first, then I'll see if you need what's inside the box." He said after a moment. "I'm happy to have you on the team, and I'm sure Zero will too, even if he say's otherwise!" Kaien bubbled with happiness.

"Thank you, sir. I can't wait to start helping!" She said excited.

"First things first, though. For tonight, head on back to your dorm. Get a good night's sleep. It will probably be your last one for awhile." He laughed.

"Of course, sir!"

"Then tomorrow, let's keep it a secret from Zero, should he be in class. You can surprise him that night with the information, while it will be his duty to teach you the ropes." Kaien told her.

"My lips are zipped, sir." She mimed zipping her lips.

"Good, now off to bed with you!" He said.

"Goodnight, sir" Sayori said as she quickly left.

Kaien stood staring at the door for a moment. He chuckled. He was sure to hear from Zero tomorrow. But for the moment that was fine. Kaien was just glad he could help at least one of his children right now. Yuuki was nurturing a broken heart, and Kaien had no way to help her with that. He could only hope that she found her way in the end. Which he knew she was a smart girl who would eventually, even if she made a few mistakes along the way.

Kaien sat down behind his desk and looked at the plain black box. He picked it up, moving it from hand to hand as he thought. He didn't think Yori would be in danger enough to need this item, but he also had another reason for not giving it to her right now. He slowly opened the black velvet box, and pulled out the small silver bracelet. He observed the small hunter's insignia on it.

Kaien trusted that Zero would keep a clear head when it came to Yori's safety. He didn't want to be the one to make the decision on whether or not Yori needed that protection or not. Zero was the only one who could make that decision. If Kaien made the decision, then it would make it look like he doubted in Zero's strength, which was the last thing Kaien ever wanted to do.

So it would be Zero's decision whether or not she needed it. If Zero felt it was something he couldn't control, then he knew Zero would do the right thing and give it to her. But Kaien trusted in Zero and his strength to control his blood lust. He hoped desperately that Yori would be able to break down Zero's walls. Perhaps make him even rely on her a little. Even though Kaien knew Zero cared for him and Yuuki in his own way, he still never relied on them. Zero had been through so much in his short life, much of it very alone. Kaien was determined to make sure Zero would not be alone for much longer.

For now, Kaien would watch. He would pull the strings to his plan from a distance, and hope. Hope that Zero would finally open up to someone, and that Yori would be ready for it too.

* * *

><p>I stared out the window in my study, carefully thinking over my plans. I had to be sure not to mess anything up. I couldn't chance messing this up. I can't let people keep treating me like a useless child. This was my chance to finally change that. To prove to Kaname that I would be more of a hindrance to him and <em>his plan<em>, when I wasn't by his side.

This might be childish, but I don't care. I have Sara on my side, and the rest of Night class. I can do this. I just have to-

In the distance the bushes began rumbling. I opened the window, and listened closely. Surely enough I could hear the beating hearts of two day class students bumbling around past curfew. I rolled my eyes, and jumped out the window. As I walked closer to the girls I could hear them talking to each other. "I hope we can get a glimpse of Idol. He's hands down the cutest!" I repressed a growl.

"I don't know, I think Senri-san is hot!" Her friend giggled.

I slipped out of the shadows, and they gasped, not expecting me. I chuckled, "Let's face it girls, Hanabusa is without a doubt the most attractive of us." I strutted up to them.

They stared at me wide eyed. I had never met them before, so they must have come to the school while I was away for a year. "Kuran-sempai! We were just..."

"Coming to get a glimpse of the elusive Night class, I know" I smiled.

It seemed to settle them a little, "Right, we were just curious."

I laughed, "Well, you know what they say..."

"What?" The gulped.

"Curiosity killed the cat," I said, trying to scare them.

It worked. They began panicking, "We- we were just leaving! We swear! We won't bother you guys anymore."

I slowly began to reach for one of them when Zero showed up out of nowhere. He grabbed my hand and pushed it away from the girl. "Get out of here" He told the girls, "_And don't come back_" He growled.

They didn't have to be told twice. They booked it out of there.

I pouted, "Always so serious, Zero. You don't have to always be such a buzz kill. I wasn't going to hurt them, just scare them a little. Just a _teeny_ bit." I smiled.

He glared at me, "I don't know what's gotten into you, but you better drop this new attitude."

"What attitude?" I crossed my arms, and glared back.

"That attitude." He said, "That_ pure blood_ attitude."

I laughed, "I'm a pure blood, Zero. Get over it." I walked up to him, "If you hate it so much, why don't you just use this on me?" I placed my hand on the bloody rose, hidden behind his jacket, "Shut me and my _pure blood_ attitude up."

He pushed me away roughly, "_Don't _come near me."

I stumbled back, "Why are you acting like this again? We were finally back to normal, and now you're being a jerk again!" I stomped my foot, "And where the hell have you been lately! You're never doing your job, and it's getting annoying. Yori told me that you were skipping class too! And since when did you live off campus?"

Zero rolled his eyes, "What I do is my business, not yours, Kuran."

My eyes narrowed. He used to call Kaname that when we were prefects. Well, at least he isn't calling me princess, "The hell it isn't! Your duty is to keep the humans away and protect the Night class' secret."

"What? The all knowing _pure blood_ can't do it on her own?" He asked sarcastically. I was this close to slapping him, his attitude was wearing on me fast.

Just as I was about to retort, I stopped. I could hear the footsteps of someone coming towards us. "Do you have no retort? That's a-"

I cut him off, "Shush! Someone's coming. This conversation isn't over, Zero. I will find out what you've been up to" I told him as I began to head back to the dorm. Who ever was out past curfew was not my problem. Zero could do with that alone. He seemed to prefer it that way anyways.

Zero rolled his eyes, "I won't tell you, no matter what, so it doesn't matter."

I growled as I walked back to the dorms, and opened the door still fuming. For some reason Zero was being more of a jerk then normal. It bothered me, I usually was the one who knew the most about Zero. But now he was keeping things from me.

Hanabusa walked down the stairs, just as I was shutting the door behind me. "Where have you been?" He asked.

I walked past him and headed towards my study again, "Dealing with the Day class, and _Zero_" I growled.

Hanabusa turned and followed me up the stairs, "What happened this time?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary. Zero was being a jerk. _Again._" I sat down on the edge of my desk, and crossed my arms. Hanabusa shut the door before coming to sit next to me. "He's up to something and he won't tell me what it is," I sulked.

"Is that really new?" Hanabusa asked rhetorically. "He's never been an open one."

"It wasn't always like this. I used to know him better than anyone. We were close. But now I hardly know anything about him." I sighed, "To be honest, it hurts just a bit." I leaned my head on Hanabusa's shoulder. "Sometimes, being a pure blood sucks."

"Things will work out eventually, Yuuki. I'm sure of it." He said to me softly.

I laughed, "I wish I had that kind of faith."

"One day you will," He said, and then we sat there in comfortable silence undisturbed for many hours.

* * *

><p>Maria finally found Zero, standing by himself in the middle of the woods. She had been so sure she had heard somebody with him, and was glad to find him alone. "Hello, Zero-kun!"<p>

Zero sighed, he had thought it was more Day class students out past curfew, but instead it was the Ichiru girl. "Maria. It's past curfew. You're not supposed to be out here."

"But Zero-kun... You said we would talk later, and this is the only time we can talk!" She pouted.

"Fine." He never could refuse Ichiru either when he pouted, "But only for a minute, what do you want? And stop calling me Zero-kun. It's weird."

Maria noticed that he was more irritable than usual, she sighed, "What's wrong, Zero? You seem mad? Did something happen?"

"I'm fine. I'm just irritated that everyone thinks it's okay to be out past curfew." He began walking towards the Night dorms, knowing that Maria would follow him just like Ichiru did when they were kids.

"You're lying. You're a terrible liar, you know? Something happened and you don't want to talk about it." She said confidently.

"If you know I don't want to talk about it, why are you continuing to talk about it?"

"Because," She said after a pause, "I want to know everything about Zero-kun. I want him to rely on me, and let me be there for him!" She said with a perky attitude.

He rolled his eyes, "I don't need you to be there for me. And I told you to stop calling me Zero-kun."

Maria grabbed Zero's hand, and brought him to a stop, "You say that, but I know you're a lot more lonely than you let on. It's okay to let people around you. We aren't all bad."

Zero snatched his hand out of hers and glared at her, "What would you know? You're a blood sucking monster just like the rest of them. You make me sick." He stalked off, "Go to back to your dorm, and leave me the hell alone." He called to her over his shoulder.

Maria stood there, watching him disappear into the Night. She felt like she had just been punched in the gut. Zero might as well have punched her, it would have been a lot less painful to bare. "You jerk!" She called off into the darkness, with tears filling her eyes.

Maria ran all the way to Moon dorms, and slammed the door shut to her room behind her. She tossed herself on the bed, and began to sob. She was positive it was all that human girl's fault. That _Sayori_. Maria was sure Sayori was twisting her Zero-kun into hating her. It wasn't fair! She would make that Sayori girl pay for this. No matter what, she would not stop until Zero-kun was hers again.

* * *

><p>"What is with all the slamming of doors tonight? So rude." Sara said to Ichijo as they sat, drinking tea. They were trying to enjoy a quiet evening of tea, but every five minutes somebody was slamming doors, and stomping around. It was quite irritating.<p>

Ichijo laughed, "Perhaps it's the full moon? Everyone is overwhelmed by their emotions."

Sara laughed with him, "Well as long as they don't start spouting fur, I suppose it's okay."


	4. The Burning

"I'm worried about Yuuki, Shiki" Rima said, as they walked through the forest alone. It was a normal occurrence for the two of them. They would often get irritated at the dorm, with all the new people they weren't used to. There always seemed to be some type of new drama going on. Especially since Yuuki began changing.

"You? Worried about Yuuki? That would be a first." He said with a bored tone. The moonlight reflected softly against his pale vampire skin. Rima could barely bring herself to look away.

"Not just her either, I'm worried about Aidou as well" She said, finally bringing her mind back to business, "You must realize how dark she's become and how dependent she is on him."

Shiki thought over what Rima said carefully. It had caught his attention how Yuuki was changing. She was darkening slowly, each day she became darker and more twisted. He worried for his cousin, as she slowly turned into a creature similar to Rido. Shiki wanted to keep her as far from that outcome as possible, but he just didn't know how he could. He wasn't one for getting into other people's business. He figured Yuuki would find her own way back from the edge, even if it took awhile. He looked at his closest and oldest friend, "Yeah," He said.

"Well?" Rima asked, pausing their walk, "Are you going to do something about it? She's your cousin after all. Something happened between Kaname and Yuuki, and she won't talk about it to anyone. Maybe you can break through her wall." Rima felt slightly uncomfortable asking such a personal thing of Shiki. She knew his personality well. He wasn't one to stick his nose into the business of others'. Neither was she, but this was quickly turning into a terrible situation for all of the Night class, no the entire vampire race, if Yuuki didn't return to her normal self. Although, even she had to admit, Yuuki was still much more nice than Kaname ever was to them. She didn't demand the same respect Kaname did from everyone. And there was certainly a lot less slapping going around, but that was mostly because they were too scared to step out of line.

Shiki sighed, and rubbed the back of his neck. All this stress was not good for him at all, "No. I'm not going to do something about it." He began walking again, "If Kaname or Yuuki come to me and ask me for help, then I'll help. But I won't stick myself into the middle of their business." He couldn't bring himself to. He just couldn't. He knew he should, but it would be crossing too many lines. He might share blood with the Kuran siblings, but he wasn't foolish enough to think he was at all their equals. They were the elite, the best of the best, the _pure bloods_. He was just a illegitimate child of a pureblood, the most noble of the noble.

"Senri!" Rima grabbed his arm, and brought him to a stop again, "If you won't talk to Yuuki or Kaname-sama, at least talk to Aidou. He's one of us, you know. We already lost Akatsuki, Ruka, and Ichijo because of this nonsense. You have to stop him from getting too involved." Of this, Rima absolutely positive about. Akatsuki, Ruka, and Ichijo were lost in the madness of pure bloods, but there was still hope for Aidou. If Shiki could just... just talk to him... do something, then maybe Aidou would walk away from the madness before it was too late.

Senri sighed, and looked at Rima's desperate eyes. She was truly scared for Aidou's sake. He looked away, "Fine." He shrugged, "I'll talk to him about it. I'll admit, I'm slightly curious about his situation as well."

Rima smiled at Shiki, "Thank you." She knew Aidou wouldn't talk to her about his personal things, but he would for Shiki. She had considered talking to Yuuki for awhile, but she and Yuuki and never been close. Even Rima knew there was a limit to Yuuki's kind personality. Yuuki wouldn't open up to just anybody anymore. Which is exactly why she feared for Aidou so much. He was the only person besides Sara-sama that ever saw Yuuki's weak side anymore. Aidou had a terrible habit of confusing what feelings are appropriate for his place. If he continued to stay around Yuuki, he would most definitely end up like Ichijo. If not worse.

"Come on, it's almost dawn. The Day class will be out and about soon." Shiki grabbed Rima's hand, and together they headed back to the Moon dorms.

* * *

><p>"Kaname-sama," Akatsuki said as he walked into Kaname's personal room, "We need to talk." Akatsuki had put up with this nonsense long enough. It was about time he started getting some answers. He could put up with a lot for Kaname-sama, but now things were really starting to get out of hand. He looked at Kaname's body guard, "Alone." He added.<p>

Kaname looked up from the papers on his desk, "Alright," He waved the body guard out. "Let's talk then, Akatsuki."  
>Akatsuki took a deep breath, readying himself for the argument that was sure to come, "What you said to Yuuki-san was out of line." Normally, Akatsuki would not defend Yuuki, but even he had to admit, Kaname was unnecessarily cold to her.<p>

Kaname placed his plans to the side and stood up from his desk, "What I say to Yuuki is my business, not yours." He kept his tone even, but it was bristling with an unspoken challenge.

"It's my business when Ruka's life is on the line because of you." He said defiantly, "What you're doing to Yuuki is unfair, and dangerous." He was glad that Ruka was out doing a task for Kaname at the moment, or she would have definitely been irritated with Akatsuki for treating her like a weak woman.

Kaname shrugged, uncaring,"I'm not doing anything to Yuuki, in fact. She has no place in my plans. Like I told her, she is a hindrance."

"She's your sister! Your fiance! How can she have no place?" He sighed, knowing he wouldn't get a straight answer from Kaname, "You realize what you've done now, right?" Kaname was quiet so Akatsuki continued, "Yuuki and Sara have been together non-stop since the..." He chose his words wisely, "_incident_ at Cross Academy. They've petitioned the senate for the right to a seat among them. Though at the moment their intent is unclear, it's obvious they will be granted the right, and their power together will be unstoppable." Akatsuki had kept a close eye on Yuuki and the recent activity in the vampire world. Kaname was too busy with his _plan_ to do anything else, least of all actually take notice of the world around him. A world where Yuuki was quickly rising in power when she has no knowledge of that world, and with no body to keep an eye on her. Nobody, but Sara Shirabuki.

"Well?" When Kaname said nothing, Akatsuki's irritation grew, "Yuuki is buddying up with the one pure blood who wants world domination, and you have nothing to say about it?"

"What Yuuki does is her business." Kaname said indifferently. Akatsuki could do nothing more than just stare at Kaname with unbelief, Kaname sighed, "Is that all, Akatsuki?"

Akatsuki shook his head, and sighed, "Yeah, that's it." He turned and began to leave quickly before he said anything else he might regret. He froze in the doorway, "Well there is just one last thing, one question. You don't have to answer, I know you won't anyways, but I want to make sure you at least think about what might happen. When you finally go after Sara, you realize Yuuki might actually stand against you? Will you be able to cut her down to finish your plan? And if you do, will you be able to live with the idea of her blood on your hands? She won't give up without a fight, killing her will be the only way. Can you live with that?" Akatsuki shook his head and sighed at Kaname's expressionless face.

When the door shut behind Akatsuki, Kaname slouched in exhaustion. The information Akatsuki had just gave him continued to repeat in his head. Yuuki was playing a very very dangerous game with fire, one that was very likely to get her burned in the end. But Kaname could not allow himself to be distracted, no matter how much he ached to run to Yuuki now. He had been distracted long enough by his dear Yuuki, but now it was better for her for him to let her go. He had to finish what **she** started all those centuries ago.

"Oh Yuuki..." He chuckled to himself quietly. "What have you gotten yourself into this time, you foolish girl?"

* * *

><p>"Sara," Yuuki stood staring out the window of her study. Hanabusa had headed to bed not too long ago, and she had promised she would not be far behind. Sara opened the door to the study and slinked her way in. From Yuuki's spot by the window she could see Shiki and Rima making their way back to the dorms. Part of her wondered what the two of them were up to, so late in the morning.<p>

"Yuuki," Sara purred. She sat down in the chair behind Yuuki's desk. Nobody had the nerve to sit there, except Sara. Everyone knew not to mess with Yuuki's things.

Yuuki ignored Sara's impudence, "Have you contacted the senate, yet?" She asked. After weeks of talking and planning, Sara and she had finally decided upon a course of action that would satisfy both of them.

"Of course. Now all we have to do is wait."

Yuuki sighed, "Perfect. My favorite thing to do."

Sara chuckled, "So impatient, dear Yuuki. You'll have your revenge soon enough."

"And you'll have your power" Yuuki turned from the window and smirked at Sara, "The senate will have no choice, but to grant our request. With your knowledge and experience, and my blood status and 'charisma', they'll be begging us to take over in no time." She giggled.

Sara stood up from the chair and walked over to Yuuki, "You've been practicing the exercises I showed you?" Sara would never admit it if somebody asked her, but she really was starting to like Yuuki.

"Of course, I can't let anybody take me by surprise. Since I'm not exactly the most physically imposing I'll have to rely on my other strengths." Yuuki replied honestly.

"And you haven't been... contacted... by anybody recently, have you?" Sara asked.

Yuuki sighed in irritation, "If you're going to ask about Kaname, then ask about him. Don't skirt around it. But for your information, no I haven't. He didn't contact me before, he's not going to suddenly start doing it now." She said bitterly.

Sara smirked, that's how she wanted things to stay. "Good." She may like Yuuki, but that didn't mean she trusted the girl any. Sara was sure eventually Yuuki would slip up and show her true colors. She would go running back to Kaname sooner or later, which is exactly why she needed to mold Yuuki now, so that she would never run away from her side.

Yuuki rolled her eyes, and walked over to the door, "I'm going to sleep for the day, don't bother me."

Sara kept quiet until Yuuki opened the door, "Oh, Yuuki?" She said. Yuuki paused and turned to look at her, "Sweet dreams." Sara said with a smile.

Yuuki wanted to growl in irritation, but she couldn't help but laugh instead, "Sweet dreams, Sara" Yuuki winked and continued down the hall to her private bedroom. She paused outside of Aidou's room, he had no roommate now, since Akatsuki followed that traitor. She wanted to open the door, and lay with him. Part of her couldn't bare the idea of sleeping alone. Again, in that enormously cold bed. But she didn't open the door. She just sighed, and began walking again. Because the other part of her, was screaming at her for even considering it.

Sara eventually made her way to her own bedroom and slept peacefully with Ichijo laying close next to her. Her dreams were filled with the darkness of the future she was creating.


	5. Ashes to Ashes

Zero wasn't at school again.

It was the first thing Yori noticed as she walked into class. She wanted to not care, but the feeling of anger persisted within her. She knew he was going through a lot at the moment, but it didn't make his behavior acceptable. She knew he loved Yuuki, knew that he missed her, knew that he had to feel conflicted because she was vampire, but Yori missed her too, and it wasn't fair of him to take his feelings out on her and the headmaster.

As she sat down in her normal spot, the Disciplinary Committee arm band burned in her pocket. Tonight would be difficult. Could she handle the responsibility of protecting the night class, of protecting Yuuki?

Spending the last night going over the events in the Headmaster's office made Yori realize how foolishly she had behaved. To simply accept the Headmaster's offer because she wanted to irritate Zero was immature. She had no experience with vampires, outside of Yuuki and Zero. How could she possibly be able to do what Yuuki had done?

Looking up from her blank notebook at the board, she realized the professor was already halfway through his lecture. Jumping in surprise, she quickly scribbled as much down as she could from the chalkboard.

Now she could understand why Yuuki was constantly distracted in class.

How could she be expected to listen and take notes when she knew the pressures of being a protector of the school weighed on her shoulders? School and classes just seemed so… unimportant.

As Yori tried desperately to stay focused, part of her couldn't help but wish the day would just get over with already.

* * *

><p>The sun was still high in the sky when I rolled over and stretched my arm out across the bed. It was the coldness of the other side of the bed that brought me painfully to consciousness. Sitting up quickly, I felt traitorous tears building in my eyes.<p>

It was just a dream. . .

Taking a deep breath, I tried to calm myself. I forced the memories of him away, but the sweet bitterness of the dream was too hard to kick.

I had dreamed of him here with me, sharing our bed just like we did at the Kuran mansion. The warmth and safety that came with his presence was as strong in the dream as it was in the past.

There was no senate. No Sara. No evils to vanquished or be vanquished by. It was just... us. Painfully, blissfully, us. In my dream, we had shared everything. We were two halves of the same whole. Perfectly harmonized just as Haruka and Juri had been.

I had to force myself to remember his harsh words in order to pull myself away from the thoughts of Old Yuuki.

_I told you before, you are nothing._

_Nothing. Nothing. Nothing._

That word filled me with strength. I am nothing to Kaname, so he is nothing to me. Throwing my covers off of me, I stood and stretched. I wouldn't be getting anymore sleep tonight. Instead, I decided to grab my robe and wrap it tightly around me. Walking out the door of my room, I made my way down to my study.

* * *

><p>Yori sighed when class was finally let out. She could hear her fellow classmates talking about the night class already. Gathering up her things, she rushed back to her room to put her things away.<p>

She allowed herself a moment of pause as she looked at Yuuki's old bed. It was still made up and practically untouched since her best friend joined the night class. She had thought originally that the bed would have been filled by now, but the headmaster had yet to find her a new roommate.

Part of her was glad about that, but now wasn't the time to think about that.

The sun was setting and considering how quiet the dormitory was at the moment, meant that most of day class was probably laying in wait for the night class. Fishing the armband out of her pocket, Yori held on to it with a new found purpose.

She would not let Yuuki down.

Yori rushed quickly to the gates to the Moon Dorms and was met with the exact image she figured she would. Pushing her way to the front of the crowd, she received a number of less than polite comments from her fellow classmates. When she finally made it up to the front she turned around and faced the Day class students.

"Alright that's enough!" She put on her best Yuuki face as she placed her hands on her waist. "You all know the rules. All Day class students must return to their dormitories. "

Sadako, a girl who was in the class before Yori, spoke up the loudest, "Who do you think you are? We have a right to see them!"

Facing the girl with as much integrity as possible, Yori replied to her, "I am a member of Disciplinary committee and its my duty to make sure both classes are able to go to and from classes quickly and without incident. So please, I ask you all again, return to your dormitories!"

"Yeah, right! I bet that's a fake armband. You just made it so that you could hog the night class all to yourself!" Sadako accused her with a glare.

Taken back, Yori stuttered, "I - I did not!"

"She's lying!" A number of girls and even boys said, and started to push back against Yori.

Yori felt herself losing her balance and braced herself for the fall, but out of nowhere she felt her body braced by someone else.

The terror in the girls eyes in front of her, confirmed that it was definitely Zero.

"Oh, Zero!" Sadako gulped, "We thought you weren't here today. . . "

"Get. Out. Of. Here. " The darkness emanating from Zero was enough to even chill Yori. The day class dispersed quickly.

Yori relaxed and breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks Zero, I thought they were going to trample me for sure. "

When he made no reply, Yori turned around and froze.

Zero was. . . seriously pissed. He was so angry he honestly looked like a vampire for the first time. "Uh. . . Zero?"

"What. . . the hell. . . were you thinking!" Zero exploded.

Yori shrunk back, but forced herself to remember that Zero had no right to speak to her like that. "I was doing my job. "

"No. You were haphazardly trying to stupidly do mine, and you almost got hurt!"

"It's not just your job anymore, Kiryu! The Headmaster asked me to take Yuuki's spot and I told him yes!" She pointed towards her armband that matched his.

That only made him angrier.

Instead of exploding on her even more, Zero turned and stalked towards the real problem here. The Headmaster would answer for this one.

* * *

><p>Sara walked into Yuuki's office without permission as always, "Looks like the Disciplinary committee actually did his job today. "<p>

Ignoring the irritation she felt, Yuuki greeted Sara, "Goodmorning, Sara. "

Sara looked at Yuuki and took in her appearance. The young pureblood looked awful. She was still dressed for sleep, her hair was a disaster and she had bags under her dark eyes.

"You look dreadful. Bad dreams?" Yuuki stiffened but otherwise ignored Sara.

Sara smirked at Yuuki's reaction. She had hit a nerve thats for sure.

"What do you want Sara?"

"Well, I had some news from the Senate but perhaps its better if I come back later. " Sara started towards the door, but it slammed shut before she got there.

"Sit down, Sara. " The heaviness of Yuuki's order weighed on her, and she couldn't help but obey. Though she certainly took her time in doing so.

Now in a sour mood, Sara told Yuuki the news she had received.

Yuuki growled, "So the Senate won't approve us until they've spoken to me in person?"

"No, apparently allowing a barely eighteen year old vampire youngling onto the senate is highly controversial, even if said vampire is a pureblood as well as a Kuran. "

The glass in the window cracked, and Sara knew Yuuki was doing all she could to hold in her emotions. Yuuki clenched her fists, and glared out the window. "Fine. Make the arrangements, and make sure the rest of the Night class makes it to class today. I'm remaining here for the day, I need to continue my practices. "

"So you do. " Sara was equally irritated now. She didn't enjoy being bossed around by Yuuki. Who did that little girl think she was?

Yuuki glanced over her shoulder at the older pureblood, "You can go. "

The door opened and Sara rushed out of the door, despite how much she wanted to fight back.

* * *

><p>The door to the Headmaster's office flew open with a bang, and Kaien knew Zero was in his office before he even turned around.<p>

"Zero!" Sayori gasped in horror at Zero's rudeness.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Cross?"

Kaien turned around slowly, making sure his poker face was firmly in place, "What do you mean, Zero?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. " Zero said, but still reached over and pulled Yori so that Kaien could see the armband. "This was stupid and dangerous. Wakaba has no place trying to do my job. "

Yori opened her mouth to argue, but Kaien beat her to it, "Zero, this is not only your job. True, you have been doing the duty solo since Yuuki's transformation, but only because I had no one to replace her with. Ms. Wakaba has so kindly offered to take her place and aid you in Disciplinary duties."

Zero eyed the older man wearily, "I know that you're up to something, old man. If you're tired of me skipping classes and you're trying to punish me, then fine. I'll stop, but she has no place in the night life of this academy. She's human. "

"Hey!" Yori was hurt by Zero's words. Yes, she was human. Yes, she might very well be over her head here, but she did not need Zero to tell her those things. It was hard enough for Yori to deal with the fact that her best friend was beyond her now, in a world she could never possibly belong in, she didn't need that fact thrown back into her face by Kiryu.

"Sayori, dear, would you mind giving Zero and I a moment alone? The night class should be in class right now, but you know how the day class girls are, perhaps you should start patrolling. Zero will be along shortly."

Bowing respectfully, Yori said, "Of course, Headmaster."

When Wakaba was out of the room, Zero started, "Listen to me-"

"No," Kaien interrupted him, "Zero, you listen to me. I'm well aware of the dangers I am placing Ms. Wakaba within, just as she is aware of them. I understand that this is no easy task, it wasn't for Yuuki, it isn't for you and it won't be for Sayori either. Being a guardian of this school is a burden I wish I did not have to lay on the shoulders of those so young.

But unfortunately, I must, and you must help Wakaba learn to navigate this world.

She was the only reasonable candidate, Zero. She was in the middle of the two worlds as it was. Yuuki has decided to not erase Sayori's memories, which means it's only a matter of time that Sayori placed herself in danger by being so close to Night class."

Zero shook his head, "Dragging her even farther into the darkness does nothing to save her. "

Kaien watched his son battling within himself, "But with a guardian of her own. . . well I think she'll be better off."

Zero scoffed and shook his head, "You and Kaname, I swear. I'm no hero, Cross. I'm not a guardian. You and I both know that I'm more of a danger to Wakaba than any of the Night class students could ever be. "

The bitterness of Zero's words was like a knife through Kaien's heart. If only Zero could see what he saw so plainly when he looked at his son. . . "You are what you allow yourself to be, Zero."

Zero stayed quiet, with his face turned away from Kaien.

Kaien sighed and reached down to his desk where the little black box lay. Picking it up and tossing it to Zero, he said, "If you are honestly concerned, then this should put your mind at ease."

Zero caught it without turning his head. He opened the box and was surprised to see another bracelet like the one Yuuki had. "This is. . . "

"Yes. It will act just as the other one did. As long as Yori has this, she will be in no danger around you, Zero. "

Zero turned accusing eyes towards Kaien, "Why didn't you give this to her from the start?"

"Because I don't believe she needs that piece of jewelry in order for you to control yourself. And because, Zero, I believe in you."

Zero slammed the box shut again and stuffed it in his pocket. Walking abruptly to the door, he said over his shoulder, "You're wasting your time, Cross. "

The door slammed behind him.

Kaien stared at the door for many minutes, his heart breaking as he thought of his poor lost son. If only, if only Zero would just see what he did. If only.

* * *

><p><strong>Holy bejesus, guys. It's been a very, very long time since I even thought about Vampire Knight. This update is really all because of Netflix. I recently decided to give the Anime another go, and as I watched it I couldn't help but think of new ideas for this story. I would like to warn everybody, I have not read the last few chapters of Vampire Knight. I've read the wikipedia page of what happened so I have the main jist of what happened, but I stopped reading the manga before it ended. I'm glad that I won't be able to read it because I'm hoping not to follow the canon storyline, and this way I won't be tempted to take the easy way out.<strong>

**For all Kaname fans out there, I'm sorry, but I don't know how big of a part he'll play in this yet. I tried to add a scene with him in this chapter but I just couldn't figure out what wouldn't seem forced. I'm trying really hard to think of a reason to bring him in (because I love him too and I want to root for him too), but for now the focus is on Yuuki/Zero/Yori and the rest of the night class, because honestly nothing exciting is happening with Kaname. In my head I think he's still plotting his course with the new information he's gained on Yuuki, and he hasn't made any new decisions that bring him into the story.**

**This update was originally supposed to be a lot longer, but I swore that I wouldn't push off publishing an update past Saturday so. . . I'm sorry. ):**


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